Breaking Stereotypes & Creating Opportunity

Bell Tower STREET PROOF Notes – Part 1

On December 19th, approximately 25 community members gathered for the 160th Peace Rally of the Meet Me at the Bell Tower series to discuss how we can make our community street proof. We shared ideas for Tips for Community Members, talked about who the Helpers are and even had some support from the Winnipeg Police Service to help us understand how police system is organized, and how resources are dispatched. Find below some of the basic notes including Short and Long term goals for the Winnipeg Police – agreed upon by the Indigenous Partnership section, as well as the Bell Tower TO-DO list.

STREET PROOF

The theme was Street Proof as we wanted to share concepts that would be helpful for families to take away for safety in the streets and also build a better understanding in the community about what the police’s role is. The below 2 sections (Helpers and Community Tips) are being developed into a card that we can share with community members so they can keep in their pocket!

attend MM@BT to talk with community members about local safety concerns every week

Learn about how the WPS system works

how police resources are prioritized (Ranking System 1-9**)

how to contact the Community Relations Office and Indigenous Partnership Section

when a case is considered stale

how to speak to the Communications Centre (the people who answer 911 and non-emerg. calls)

engage police without aggression

get the badge numbers when interacting with police officers

get the incident numbers when dealing with 311, 911 and non-emerg

volunteer in Block Parent or Bear Clan Patrol to help keep community safe

**more detailed info is needed about this

Winnipeg Police Goals – SHORT TERM

open a case (no details will be released, but know a case was opened at the individuals request and with the support of our community and the WPS)

Send officers to Street Proof Bell Tower Gathering

Have WPS attend more communtiy events

Have WPS available to answe questions about HOW the police system works

MM@BT delegation to meet with New District 3 Inspector

Winnipeg Police Goals – LONG TERM

Presentations delivered in community would ideally be with a community member presenting beside the police officer informing citizens about citizen respoinsibilities and opportunities to support communtiy safety

Increased Sensitivity Training and more indigenous recruitment in the following departments

WPS Communications Centre

WPS officers and cadets who engage directly with community members

Missing and Murdered Indigeneous Women

“BELIEVE ME”

Increased coordination with other jurisdictions

RCMP

Drunk Tank

Justice System

Improvements to the follow up mechanisms available to citizens when they feel cases have gone cold or “stale”

And though this wasn’t on our official papers much conversation was had about the Proffessional Standards Unit of the WPS and how citizens at the bell tower would be more comfortable if there was some sort of external group that did inviestigations into police misconduct.

BELL TOWER TO DO LIST

Request a presentation from

WPS Communications Centre

WPS Professional Standards Unit

Invite Police Chief Devon Clunis to the Bell Tower

Learn about BLOCK PARENTS as well as BEAR CLAN PATROL

Translate the RCMP Report on 1181 Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women into easy to understand language for community